Editing Diocese

{{Short description|Christian district governed by a bishop}}
{{about|ecclesiastical dioceses| the administrative entities in the Roman Empire|Roman diocese}}
{{redirect|Diocesan}}
{{More citations needed|date=June 2015}}
[[File:Roma-san giovanni03.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.25|Like other dioceses, the [[Diocese of Rome]] has a ''[[cathedra]]'', the official seat of the [[Bishop of Rome]].]]

In [[Ecclesiastical polity|church governance]], a '''diocese''' or '''bishopric''' is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a [[bishop]].<ref>''Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language'', 1989</ref>

== History ==
{{See also|Bishop#Christian bishops and civil government|l1=Bishops and civil government}}
[[File:Roman Empire with dioceses in 400 AD.png|thumb|right|upright=1.25|Dioceses of the Roman Empire, AD 400]]
In the later organization of the [[Roman Empire]], the increasingly subdivided [[Roman province|provinces]] were administratively associated in a larger unit, the [[Roman diocese|diocese]] ([[Latin]] ''dioecesis'', from the [[Greek language|Greek]] term διοίκησις, meaning "administration").<ref>{{Cite book|last=Doyle|first=Dennis M.|title=What is Christianity?|publisher=Paulist Press|year=2016|isbn=9781587686207}}</ref>

[[Christianity]] was given legal status in 313 with the [[Edict of Milan]]. Churches began to organize themselves into [[Roman diocese|dioceses]] based on the [[Roman diocese|civil dioceses]], not on the larger regional imperial districts.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bright|first=William|title=A History of the Church, from the Edict of Milan, A.D. 313, to the Council of Chalcedon, A.D. 451|publisher=J.H. and Jas. Parker|year=1860|pages=4}}</ref> These dioceses were often smaller than the [[Roman province|provinces]]. Christianity was declared the Empire's [[State church of the Roman Empire|official religion]] by [[Theodosius I]] in 380. [[Constantine the Great|Constantine I]] in 318 gave litigants the right to have court cases transferred from the civil courts to the bishops.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Bateman|first=C.G.|date=January 17, 2018|title=The Supreme 'Courts' of the Roman Empire: Constantine's Judicial Role for the Bishops|journal=SSRN|doi=10.2139/ssrn.2938800|ssrn=2938800}}</ref> This situation must have hardly survived [[Julian (emperor)|Julian]], 361–363. Episcopal courts are not heard of again in the East until 398 and in the West in 408. The quality of these courts was low, and not above suspicion as the Bishop of [[Alexandria Troas]] found that clergy were making a corrupt profit. Nonetheless, these courts were popular as people could get quick justice without being charged fees.<ref>A. H. M. Jones, Later Roman Empire, 1964, p. 480–481 {{ISBN|0-8018-3285-3}}</ref> Bishops had no part in the civil administration until the town councils, in decline, lost much authority to a group of 'notables' made up of the richest councilors, powerful and rich persons legally exempted from serving on the councils, retired military, and bishops post-AD 450. As the [[Western Roman Empire|Western Empire]] collapsed in the 5th century, bishops in Western Europe assumed a larger part of the role of the former Roman governors. A similar, though less pronounced, development occurred in the East, where the Roman administrative apparatus was largely retained by the [[Byzantine Empire]]. In modern times, many dioceses, though later subdivided, have preserved the boundaries of a long-vanished Roman administrative division. For Gaul, Bruce Eagles has observed that "it has long been an academic commonplace in France that the medieval dioceses, and their constituent ''[[Pagus|pagi]]'', were the direct territorial successors of the Roman ''[[Civitas|civitates]]''."<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|first=Bruce|last=Eagles|title=Britons and Saxons on the Eastern Boundary of the Civitas Durotrigum| encyclopedia=Britannia|volume=35|year=2004|page= 234}}, noting for instance {{cite book|first=E.M.|last= Wightman|title=Gallia Belgica|location=London|year= 1985|page=26}}</ref>

Modern usage of 'diocese' tends to refer to the sphere of a bishop's jurisdiction. This became commonplace during the self-conscious "classicizing" structural evolution of the [[Carolingian Empire]] in the 9th century, but this usage had itself been evolving from the much earlier ''parochia'' ("[[parish]]"; Late Latin derived from the Greek παροικία ''paroikia''), dating from the increasingly formalized Christian authority structure in the 4th century.<ref>{{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Diocese |volume=8 |page=279 }}</ref>

== Archdiocese ==
Dioceses ruled by an [[archbishop]] are commonly referred to as archdioceses; most are [[metropolitan see]]s, being placed at the head of an [[ecclesiastical province]]. In the [[Catholic Church]], some are [[suffragan diocese|suffragans]] of a metropolitan see or are directly subject to the [[Holy See]].

The term "archdiocese" is not found in [[Canon law of the Catholic Church|Catholic canon law]], with the terms "diocese" and "[[episcopal see]]" being applicable to the area under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of any bishop.<ref>{{Catholic Encyclopedia|prescript=|wstitle=Archdiocese}}</ref> If the title of archbishop is granted on ''[[Archbishop ad personam|personal]]'' grounds to a [[diocesan bishop]], his diocese does not thereby become an archdiocese.{{Better source needed|reason=The current source is from 1904, and may not accurately reflect the 1980's canon law|date=July 2023}}

==Catholic Church==
[[File:Coat Of Arms Roman Catholic Diocese of Las Vegas.svg|thumb|Coat of arms of the [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Las Vegas]]]]
{{Further|List of Catholic dioceses (alphabetical)|List of Catholic dioceses (structured view)}}
The [[canon law of the Catholic Church|Canon Law of the Catholic Church]] defines a diocese as "a portion of the people of God which is entrusted to a bishop for him to shepherd with the cooperation of the presbyterium, so that, adhering to its pastor and gathered by him in the Holy Spirit through the gospel and the Eucharist, it constitutes a particular church in which the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church of Christ is truly present and operative."<ref>{{Cite book|last=Catholic Church|url=https://www.vatican.va/archive/cod-iuris-canonici/eng/documents/cic_lib2-cann368-430_en.html|title=Code of Canon Law|year=1983|chapter=Can. 369}}</ref>

Also known as ''particular churches'' or ''local churches'', dioceses are under the authority of a [[Bishops in the Catholic Church|bishop]]. They are described as [[ecclesiastical]] districts defined by geographical territory. Dioceses are often grouped by the [[Holy See]] into [[Ecclesiastical province#Catholic Church|ecclesiastical provinces]] for greater cooperation and common action among regional dioceses. Within an ecclesiastical province, one diocese can be designated an "archdiocese" or "metropolitan archdiocese", establishing centrality within an ecclesiastical province and denoting a higher rank. Archdioceses are often chosen based on their population and historical significance. All dioceses and archdioceses, and their respective bishops or archbishops, are distinct and autonomous. An archdiocese has limited responsibilities within the same ecclesiastical province assigned to it by the Holy See.<ref>{{Cite web|last=CCCB|title=Ecclesiastical Circumscriptions: Dioceses|url=https://www.cccb.ca/the-catholic-church-in-canada/ecclesiastical-circumscriptions/dioceses/|url-status=live|website=Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200812234314/https://www.cccb.ca/the-catholic-church-in-canada/ecclesiastical-circumscriptions/dioceses/ |archive-date=2020-08-12 }}</ref>

{{as of|2024|12}}, in the [[Catholic Church]] there are 2,898 regular dioceses (or eventually eparchies) consisting of: 1 [[Holy See|papal see]], 9 [[patriarchate]]s, 4 [[Major archiepiscopal church|major archeparchies]], 564 [[metropolitan archdiocese]]s, 77 single archdioceses and 2,261 dioceses in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dioceses by Type |url=https://gcatholic.org/dioceses/types.htm |access-date=2024-12-18 |website=gcatholic.org}}</ref>

In the [[Eastern Catholic Churches]] that are in communion with the [[Pope]], the equivalent entity is called an ''[[eparchy]]'' or "archeparchy", with an "eparch" or "archeparch" serving as the [[Ordinary (church officer)|ordinary]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eeparchy.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Particular_Law_Canons.pdf|title=Canons of the Particular Law of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church|publisher=[[Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Edmonton]]|access-date=22 July 2021|location=[[Edmonton, Alberta]]}}</ref>

==Eastern Orthodox Church==
{{Further|List of Eastern Orthodox bishops and archbishops|Eparchy}}
The [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] calls dioceses ''episkopes'' (from the Greek ἐπισκοπή) in the Greek tradition and ''eparchies'' (from ἐπαρχία) in the Slavic tradition.{{citation needed|date=June 2015}}

==Lutheran churches==
{{Further|List of Lutheran dioceses and archdioceses}}

Certain [[Lutheran]] denominations such as the [[Church of Sweden]] do have individual dioceses similar to Roman Catholics. These dioceses and archdioceses are under the government of a bishop (see [[Archbishop of Uppsala]]).<ref>[http://hbar.phys.msu.su/gorm/chrons/bremen.htm Adam of Bremen, Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050207105412/http://hbar.phys.msu.su/gorm/chrons/bremen.htm |date=2005-02-07 }}, online text in Latin; scholia 94.</ref> Other Lutheran bodies and synods that have dioceses and bishops include the [[Church of Denmark]], the [[Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland]], the [[Evangelical Church in Germany]] (partially), and the [[Church of Norway]].<ref>see ''[[List of Lutheran dioceses and archdioceses]]''.</ref>

From about the 13th century until the [[German mediatization]] of 1803, the majority of the bishops of the [[Holy Roman Empire]] were [[prince-bishop]]s, and as such exercised political authority over a principality, their so-called [[Hochstift]], which was distinct, and usually considerably smaller than their diocese, over which they only exercised the usual authority of a bishop.

Some American Lutheran church bodies such as the [[Evangelical Lutheran Church in America]] have a bishop acting as the head of the synod,<ref>[http://www.elca.org/Who-We-Are/Our-Three-Expressions/Churchwide-Organization/Office-of-the-presiding-bishop.aspx Office of the Presiding Bishop] on ELCA.org. Retrieved 2010-16-04.</ref> but the synod does not have dioceses and archdioceses as the churches listed above. Rather, it is divided into a [[middle judicatory]].<ref>[http://www2.elca.org/ecumenical/lern/lerning_vol2_no4.pdf LERNing newsletter from July 2005] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091216171608/http://www2.elca.org/ecumenical/LERN/lerning_vol2_no4.pdf |date=2009-12-16 }} at ELCA.org. Retrieved 2010-16-04.</ref>

The [[Lutheran Church - International]], based in [[Springfield, Illinois]], presently uses a traditional diocesan structure, with four dioceses in North America. Its current president is Archbishop Robert W. Hotes.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://lutheranchurchinternational.org/home|title=Welcome to Lutheran Church International|first=Lutheran Church|last=International|website=Lutheran Church International}}</ref>

==Anglican Communion==
{{Further|List of Anglican Communion dioceses}}
[[File:St Patrick's Cathedral, Armagh - geograph.org.uk - 528966.jpg|thumb|[[St Patrick's Cathedral, Armagh (Church of Ireland)|St Patrick's Cathedral]], the seat of the Anglican [[Diocese of Armagh]] in the [[Church of Ireland]]]]
After the [[English Reformation]], the [[Church of England]] retained the existing diocesan structure which remains throughout the [[Anglican Communion]]. The one change is that the areas administered under the Archbishop of Canterbury and Archbishop of York are properly referred to as dioceses, not archdioceses: they are the metropolitan bishops of their respective provinces and bishops of their own diocese and have the position of archbishop.{{anchor|Episcopal Unit|Pīhopatanga}}

The [[Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia]] in its constitution uses the specific term "Episcopal Unit" for both dioceses and {{lang|mi| pīhopatanga}} because of its unique three-''[[tikanga]]'' (culture) system. {{lang|mi| Pīhopatanga}} are the tribal-based jurisdictions of [[Māori people|Māori]] {{lang|mi| pīhopa}} (bishops) which overlap with the "New Zealand dioceses" (i.e. the geographical jurisdictions of the {{lang|mi|[[pākehā]]}} (European) bishops); these function like dioceses, but are never called so.<ref>[http://www.anglican.org.nz/content/download/66832/336543/file/Website%20-%20Title%20D%20Canon%20I%20Maintenance%20of%20Standards%20of%20Ministry.docx p. 1]</ref>

== Pentecostalism ==
=== Church of God in Christ ===
The [[Church of God in Christ]] (COGIC) has dioceses throughout the United States. In the COGIC, most states are divided into at least three or more dioceses that are each led by a bishop (sometimes called a "state bishop"); some states have as many as ten dioceses. These dioceses are called "jurisdictions" within COGIC.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.cogic.org/about-company/the-judicial-branch/board-of-bishops/|title=Board of Bishops|work=Church Of God In Christ|access-date=2017-09-04|language=en-US|archive-date=2018-01-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180103015210/http://www.cogic.org/about-company/the-judicial-branch/board-of-bishops/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.cogic.org/about-company/the-executive-branch/|title=The Executive Branch|work=Church Of God In Christ|access-date=2017-09-04|language=en-US|archive-date=2017-12-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171224161718/http://www.cogic.org/about-company/the-executive-branch/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints==
In [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]], the term "bishopric" is used to describe the [[Bishop (Latter Day Saints)|bishop]] together with his two counselors, not the [[ward (LDS Church)|ward]] or congregation of which a bishop has charge.

A diocese would be more similarly compared to a [[Stake (Latter Day Saints)|stake]] in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, led by a stake president who, similarly to a bishopric, forms the head of a stake presidency along with two counselors that assist him.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-05-03 |title=Stake |url=https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/stake |access-date=2025-03-29 |website=[[Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-05-03 |title=Stake President |url=https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/stake-president |access-date=2025-03-29 |website=[[Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]}}</ref>

==Catharism==
An organization created by the [[Gnosticism|Gnostic]] group known as the [[Catharism|Cathars]] in 1167 called the [[Council of Saint-Félix]] organized Cathar communities into bishoprics, which each had a bishop presiding over a specific division, even though there was no central authority.<ref>{{cite web|author=Joshua J. Mark|title=Cathars|url=https://www.worldhistory.org/Cathars/|website=[[World History Encyclopedia]]|date=2 April 2019|access-date=2024-07-02}}</ref>

==Churches that have bishops, but not dioceses==
{{See also|Methodist Circuit|Episcopal area (United Methodist Church)}}
In the [[Free Methodist Church]], [[Global Methodist Church]], [[Evangelical Wesleyan Church]], [[African Methodist Episcopal Church]] and [[United Methodist Church]], a bishop is given oversight over a geographical area called an [[Episcopal area (United Methodist Church)|episcopal area]]. Each episcopal area contains one or more [[Annual conferences within Methodism|annual conferences]], which is how the churches and clergy under the bishop's supervision are organized. Thus, the use of the term "diocese" referring to geography is the most equivalent in the United Methodist Church, whereas each annual conference is part of one episcopal area (though that area may contain more than one conference). 

In the [[Methodist Church of Great Britain|British Methodist Church]] and [[Methodist Church in Ireland|Irish Methodist Church]], the closest equivalent to a diocese is the '[[Methodist Circuit|circuit]]'. Each local church belongs to a circuit, and the circuit is overseen by a superintendent minister who has pastoral charge of all the circuit churches (though in practice they delegate such charge to other presbyters who each care for a section of the circuit and chair the local church meetings as deputies of the superintendent). This echoes the practice of the early church where the bishop was supported by a bench of presbyters. Circuits are grouped together to form districts. All of these, combined with the local membership of the church, are referred to as the "connexion". This 18th-century term, endorsed by [[John Wesley]], describes how people serving in different geographical centres are 'connected' to each other. Personal oversight of the Methodist Church is exercised by the president of the conference, a presbyter elected to serve for a year by the Methodist Conference; such oversight is shared with the vice-president, who is always a deacon or layperson. Each district is headed by a 'chair', a presbyter who oversees the district. Although the district is similar in size to a diocese, and chairs meet regularly with their partner bishops, the Methodist superintendent is closer to the bishop in function than is the chair. The purpose of the district is to resource the circuits; it has no function otherwise.{{citation needed|date=May 2015}}

==Churches that have neither bishops nor dioceses==
Many churches worldwide have neither bishops nor dioceses. Most of these churches are descended from the [[Protestant Reformation]] and more specifically the [[Swiss Reformation]] led by [[John Calvin]]; these are known as the [[Reformed Christianity|Reformed Churches]] (which include the [[Continental Reformed]], [[Presbyterian]], and [[Congregationalist]] traditions).{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}

[[Continental Reformed church]]es are ruled by assemblies of "elders" or ordained officers. This is usually called [[Synod]]al government by the continental Reformed, but is essentially the same as [[presbyterian polity]].{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}

[[Presbyterianism|Presbyterian churches]] derive their name from the [[Presbyterian polity|presbyterian form of church government]], which is governed by representative assemblies of elders. The [[Church of Scotland]] is governed solely through [[Presbyterian polity#Presbytery|presbyteries]], at parish and regional level, and therefore has no dioceses or bishops.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Scotland|first=The Church of|date=2010-02-22|title=Our structure|url=https://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/about-us/our-structure|access-date=2021-03-15|website=The Church of Scotland|language=en}}</ref>

[[Congregational church]]es practice [[Congregational polity|congregationalist church governance]], in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Congregationalism {{!}} Protestant Church History & Beliefs {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Congregationalism |access-date=2025-03-15 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>

Some [[Methodist]] denominations have a congregational polity, such as the [[Congregational Methodist Church]], while others such as the [[Fellowship of Independent Methodist Churches]] or [[Association of Independent Methodists]] are composed of independent Methodist congregations.

Most [[Baptists]] hold that no church or ecclesiastical organization has inherent authority over a Baptist church. Churches can properly relate to each other under this polity only through voluntary cooperation, never by any sort of coercion. Furthermore, this Baptist polity calls for freedom from governmental control.<ref>{{Cite journal | author=Pinson, William M. Jr. |title=Trends in Baptist Polity |publisher=Baptist History and Heritage Society |url=http://www.baptisthistory.org/contissues/pinson.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013130242/http://baptisthistory.org/contissues/pinson.htm |archive-date=2007-10-13 }}</ref> Most Baptists believe in "Two offices of the church"—pastor-elder and deacon—based on certain scriptures ({{Bibleverse|1Tim|3:1–13||1 Timothy 3:1–13}}; {{Bibleverse|Titus|1–2}}). Exceptions to this local form of local governance include a few churches that submit to the leadership of a body of [[Elder (Christianity)#Baptists|elders]], as well as the [[Episcopal Baptist]]s that have an [[Episcopal polity|episcopal system]].{{citation needed|date=June 2015}}

[[Churches of Christ]], being strictly [[non-denominational]], are governed solely at the congregational level.

== See also ==
{{Portal|Christianity}}
* {{Section link|Church of England|Structure}}
* [[Global organisation of the Catholic Church|Global organization of the Catholic Church]]
* [[Lists of patriarchs, archbishops, and bishops]]
* {{lang|la|[[Notitia Dignitatum]]}}
* [[Particular church]]
* [[Personal ordinariate]]
* [[Methodist Church Ghana]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Sources and external links==
{{Wiktionary|diocese|bishopric}}
{{Wikidata property|P708}}
* [http://www.gcatholic.org/dioceses/ Complete list of Catholic dioceses worldwide] by [http://www.gcatholic.org GCatholic.org]
* [http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/ Virtually complete list of current and historical Catholic dioceses worldwide]
* [http://www.katolsk.no/utenriks/index_en.htm Another such list, in English and Norwegian]
* [http://anglican.org/domain/admin/bydiocese.html List of current Anglican/Episcopalian dioceses]
* [http://www.diocese.in Indian Orthodox Church Diocese Portal]
* [http://www.cattoliciromani.com/forum/showthread.php/stemmi_dei_vescovi_delle_diocesi-2860.html Coats of Bishops and of Dioceses] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090922222710/http://www.cattoliciromani.com/forum/showthread.php/stemmi_dei_vescovi_delle_diocesi-2860.html |date=2009-09-22 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20111009060529/http://www.ordemdesantacecilia.org/ Ligação externa Diocese de Santo Anselmo – Brasil] (archived 9 October 2011)

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[[Category:Episcopacy in Anglicanism]]
[[Category:Episcopacy in the Catholic Church]]
[[Category:Dioceses (ecclesiastical)| ]]
[[Category:Christian terminology]]